Free The Middle of Somewhere by Sonja Yoerg

He’d regret inviting her for a drink at Freddie’s and everything that followed. But now they were caught, and it was her fault.
    Liz stared at the letter and felt herself collapsing away from Dante, in shame and in fear. Her breath snagged in her chest and she rocked back and forth, biting her lip to keep from sobbing. He deserved someone better than her. At the very least, he deserved the truth.
    If she came clean, she would break his heart, and her own. She might endure that, but she was dead certain she could not bear to see his face when he found out his beloved widow had blood on her hands.

CHAPTER SEVEN

    W hen she returned to the café the next morning, the last person she expected to see was Dante. But there he was, sitting at a picnic table, leaning on his elbows and fiddling with his phone. She scanned the area for his pack but didn’t see it anywhere. He looked both bored and anxious. And of course he was there to see her.
    Her first impulse was to avoid him. What would another confrontation accomplish, other than more pain? Nothing had changed since they’d parted three days before, despite his note and the feelings it had provoked. She was well rested, fully supplied and poised to continue her southward journey. All she needed to do before rejoining the trail was eat breakfast and turn in the bucket for recycling. Neither was imperative. She could duck behind the store to the footpath that led across the road to the JMT. He’d be left thinking he’d missed her and she’d be gone, hiking alone as she’d intended. That was, after all, why she was here.
    She hesitated. Avoiding him was childish. She approached the store, leaned her pack against a post and began transferring the extra food from the bucket into the trash.
    â€œLiz.”
    She tossed a handful of energy bars into the can.
    â€œLiz.” He put his hand on her arm. “How are you? How was your hike?”
    A bag of trail mix, the extra sunscreen, into the can. She held a packet of M&M’s in her palm.
    He moved in front of her and tilted his head to better see her face. She focused on the bucket. His voice was soft with concern. “Two nights ago, did you have a thunderstorm? I was worrying about you so much.”
    That night. Her heel digging into the mud. The driving rain. The waves of fear cascading through her body as the thunder rumbled. The world exploding in light, the silhouetted figure appearing between the trees.
    A shiver slid down her spine. She chewed her lip to control her emotions and handed him the M&M’s.
    He smiled as if nothing had happened. “Let me buy you breakfast.”
    The café had just opened but was already half full. They took a small table next to the counter. As the waitress poured coffee, Paul and Linda came in and sat near the door. Linda caught her eye and waved cheerfully. When Linda’s gaze fell on Dante, a bemused expression took over her face. Oh, the predictably topsy-turvy lives of young couples! Liz gave Linda a weak smile and picked up her menu.
    They ordered. She asked Dante what he’d been doing since Lyell Canyon, which was not quite the same as asking why he was here.
    â€œI took the shuttle from Tuolumne, then a taxi.” Before she could ask why he didn’t drive, he went on. “I’ve been thinking. And walking. Eating. Mostly thinking.”
    â€œYou didn’t go home?”
    His face drooped. “I couldn’t.”
    â€œSo you’ve been hanging around? Like a trail groupie?” She meant it lightly, but it came out a little harsh.
    â€œI was waiting for you.”
    The plates arrived, and they ate in silence except for Liz nervously tapping the tip of her knife on the table. Dante stole glances at her as if she might do something unexpected, such as run out the door or spontaneously combust. They’d almost finished eating when she noticed him watching the McCartneys. Paul whispered something in